Which of the following uses teams to combine vertical and horizontal structures?

The structure of an organization refers to the hierarchy within a company. It defines the concept of subordinates who collaborate to accomplish stated goals. The organization’s goals and culture typically determine its structure, which influences the manner in which the organization performs. The allocation of responsibilities throughout the hierarchy depends upon the structure of the organization. Companies that employ a horizontal structure, also termed a flat structure, operate with few levels between managers and staff. Frequently used in small organizations, the horizontal structure represents a belief that involving employees directly in the decision-making processes and minimizing management supervision of employees increases productivity.

Inhaltsverzeichnis Show

Value-Added Teams
Communication
Corporate Culture
External Focus
The Four Major Types of Organizational Structures in Business
Picking The Right Organizational Structure
Which of the following profile of an organization focuses on relationships team building commitment?
Which of the following are characteristics of simple organizational structures?
In which structure an organization has multiple reporting lines of authority for employees?
Which of the following represents the broadest level of strategy and is concerned with decisions about growing maintaining or shrinking very large companies?

Value-Added Teams

Unlike the vertical organization structure, which consists of multiple layers, horizontal organizations break down into significantly less core groups. Typically, a senior level management group and a group of involved employees exist in horizontal organizations. The management layer holds responsibility for policies and corporate strategy; staff level employees work in various process-driven teams. Teams work independently, allowing corporate leaders to concentrate on the larger direction of the company. Horizontal organizations focus on the content and flow of the work; employees focus on work that directly impacts customers and, therefore, the company’s bottom line.

Communication

Interaction between employees in horizontal organizations leads to productive working relationships and overall good communication. Employees filter new information at the team level. Employees on different teams often possess a cross-functional understanding of other teams’ responsibilities This understanding reduces costly conflicts that sometimes arise between different departments. Team members tend to resolve local problems within the group and allow the organization to function and adapt well to an increasingly shifting business environment.

Corporate Culture

Organizations that operate using a horizontal structure boast a corporate culture, the shared set of goals for the organization, openness, coordination and positive employee relations. The culture values employees, both management and staff levels, and promotes ongoing improvement of employee performance. The culture of the organization focuses on empowering employees with responsibility and concern for their overall well-being.

External Focus

The horizontal structure creates conditions conducive to focusing on the external environment, the customers, rather than on internal issues. Companies define a value proposition that addresses customers’ needs and stays consistent with the organization’s financial goals. Employees, organized in groups of skills best suited to achieve the company’s goals, focus on delivering value to customers. Able to make decisions within the teams, employees, often incented by performance-drive goals, align their activities to satisfying the customers’ wants and needs.

Innovation

Companies that operate using a horizontal structure produce an environment conducive for continuous innovation. Employees who are empowered in their job functions and decision-making process combine for a collective intelligence. This structure leans toward group thought and, as such, maximizes the possibility for new ideas that reaffirm the vision, propel the company’s growth and increases profits

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The Four Major Types of Organizational Structures in Business

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The types of organizational structures in business are just as important as its products, marketing plan and long-term strategy. Businesses need a sturdy structure to attract and retain talented employees, as well as create a workable organizational hierarchy.

Typically, businesses choose from four types of organizational structure. Each comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. Choosing the right one for your business is imperative because poor organizational structure leads to confusion among employees, poor decision-making among managers and, ultimately, less than ideal results for a business.

Students in Point Park University’s online Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Leadership classes learn about management strategies and approaches to organizational design as part of a curriculum that prepares them for success as business leaders.

Picking The Right Organizational Structure

While there are variations, most companies are created based on one of the following four organizational structures. The goal for business leaders is picking the structure that works best for their particular situation.

Functional

A functional structure is the most traditional approach. It calls for grouping together people who do similar tasks based on their area of specialty. In other words, you’ll find all the accountants in finance and all the marketers in marketing. Managers led each area and report up to a director or executive who may oversee multiple departments.

The advantage here is clear: it provides those with similar abilities the ability to easily communicate and work on projects together. That’s also the reason this is the most popular business structure. The disadvantage is that teams may get “siloed,” unaware of what is happening in other areas of a company.

Divisional

In a divisional structure, people are grouped together based on the product or service they provide, not the work they do. For example, a large corporation such as General Electric has divisions for electronics, transportation, and aviation, each with its own team of accountants, marketers, etc. Global corporations may have divisions based on different geographic areas. On a smaller scale, a restaurant that also provides catering services may have separate divisions to oversee weddings, corporate events and business within the main restaurant.

Matrix

A matrix structure is a hybrid of the functional and divisional structures. It may involve employees reporting to different bosses depending on their current assignment. For example, a software design specialist may report to her boss in IT, but she’s also brought onto specific projects because of her expertise. When that happens, she will report to a different boss as long as that project continues.

The disadvantage is that employees may find it confusing to report to multiple bosses. But clear communication on priorities at all levels can eliminate these issues. The matrix structure requires a great deal of planning but can allow for the creation of the best possible teams to tackle the biggest challenges.

Flat

The flat structure dispenses with the usual hierarchy of a functional structure, decentralizing management and doing away with the need for middle manager bosses. Employees essentially act as their own boss, giving them the ability to communicate directly with peers on ideas and projects.

The advantage is a lot more freedom for employees, which requires a group of self-starters who don’t need managers checking up daily on their work. A flat structure is common in incubators and startups where the focus is on product and services design, not production or top-down management structures.

All four types of organizational structures in business can work well in the right situations. While most companies will choose from the functional or divisional approaches, a flat approach is becoming increasingly popular with modern companies.

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Which of the following profile of an organization focuses on relationships team building commitment?

The Clan Culture type focuses on relationships, team building, commitment, empowering human development, engagement, mentoring, and coaching. Organizations that focus on human development, human resources, team building, and mentoring would fit this profile.

Which of the following are characteristics of simple organizational structures?

Some of the characteristics of the simple structure are as follows:.

Low formalization..

A wide span of control..

Flexibility..

Centralized authority..

In which structure an organization has multiple reporting lines of authority for employees?

A matrix structure describes an organization that has multiple reporting lines of authority. For example, an employee who specializes in a particular product might have both the functional reporting line and a geographic reporting line.